The Insight
Spring 2006
Talking Books / Special Needs Library
Jacksonville Public Library
TBL's New Home
Since October 17 of last year the Talking Books / Special Needs library has been located in room 063 on the Conference level of the new Main library downtown. Our current location is a great improvement over our previous home in the lower level of the Bradham-Brook Northwest branch library. Our new location has both a public service area and a staff area. We are still in the process of setting up our 8 computers which will have various adaptive technology software programs available to the visually and physically handicapped. The programs include:Zoomtext, JAWS, OpenBook & Kurzweil 3000. In the staff work area we have a large array of mechanized compact shelving that move with the touch of a button. We now have ample room for our descriptive video and Talking Book collections. Come by and visit us!
Florida Descriptive Videos
In recent months Jacksonville’s Talking Books / Special Needs library has entered into a descriptive video sharing agreement with the rest of the Talking Books libraries in the state of Florida. It is now possible to receive DVs from outside of the Jacksonville service area. This will provide our customers a much larger catalog of descriptive videos to choose from. Call us at 630-1999 to see how you can begin receiving descriptive videos.
Did You Know?
Music legend Ray Charles moved to Jacksonville, Florida from the Florida State School for the Deaf in St. Augustine to gain experience in playing live music in a big city. While living downtown with friends and playing at any gig that he could get, Ray managed to navigate the city by memorizing the locations of drainage pipes, sewers, or cracks in the sidewalks. “Ray Charles Interview.” Ability Magazine. 19 Sep. 2001. http://abilitymagazine.com/charles_interview.html.
WJCT Radio Reading Service
WJCT Radio Reading Service is available to anyone who is eligible for Talking Books. It brings the Florida Times Union into your home as well as other excellent programs you won’t get any other way currently. WJCT RRS broadcasts 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. RRS also offers readings of the national newspapers, magazines, and other special interest programming. Be sure to tune it Tuesday mornings at 10:45 am to hear Jerry Reynolds, Talking Books Library manager, discuss current events in the visually challenged community as well as new book excerpts.
Talking Books Club
Talking Books Club is a group of visually impaired individuals that meet the 4th Friday of every month at ILAB at the FCCJ downtown campus to discuss a monthly selected book. A few books that they have discussed in the past have been The Da Vinci Code, Tuesday’s with Morrie, Life of Pi, Cold Mountain, and other popular selections.
Coming Book Club Selections:
March The Known World by Edward P. Jones.
April Feast of All Souls by Anne Rice.
May Shattered by Dick Francis.
June To Be Announced
New Books
Fiction
RC059763
Drive me crazy by Eric Jerome Dickey
African American "Driver," an ex-con and L.A. chauffeur, is trying to forget his affair with Lisa, his boss's unstable wife. Lisa pays Driver $15,000 to kill her husband, and her thugs come to collect when Driver backs out.
RC059474
Eleven days: a novel of the heartland by Donald Harstad
Responding to a 911 emergency call, small-town Iowa deputy sheriff Carl Houseman finds a mutilated body at a farmhouse--the first of four apparent satanic ritual killings. With a suspect list possibly including the town's pastor, Carl's investigation soon uncovers dirty little secrets hidden in the community.
RC059203
Irish eyes: a Callahan Garrity mystery by Kathy Hogan Trochek
Returning home from a St. Patrick's Day party, moonlighting homicide detective Bucky Deavers, former partner of Atlanta PI Callahan Garrity, is shot during an apparent liquor store holdup. Garrity investigates amid allegations that her longtime friend Bucky's second job may be linked to a series of robberies.
RC059287
The Codex by Douglas Preston
When Tom Broadbent and his brothers discover that their tomb-robbing father has taken his priceless collection of antiquities (including a Mayan codex) and gone into hiding, they search the globe for him. Others soon join the hunt.
New Books
Nonfiction
RC059750
Armageddon: The Battle for Germany, 1944-1945 by Max Hastings
Military historian details the collapse of the Third Reich from the perspectives of the western Allies, the Soviets, and the Germans.
RC059941
Real men work in the pits: a life in NASCAR racing by Jeff Hammond
TV commentator Hammond describes his life and career at the racetrack, from a boyhood spent fixing race cars to his work with famous NASCAR drivers Junior Johnson and Darrell Waltrip.
RC059414
The new retirement: the ultimate guide to the rest of your life by Jan Cullinane
Two retirement-seminar instructors outline financial, emotional, and physical factors to consider before taking the retirement leap.
RC059169
Catch a fish, throw a ball, fly a kite: twenty-one timeless skills every child should know (and any parent can teach!) by Jeffrey Lee
Family doctor offers step-by-step instructions for teaching children various skills. He advises parents to think like beginners and to know their children and what they are ready to do.
RC059322
Seeking enlightenment...hat by hat: a skeptic's path to religion by Nevada Barr
A collection of spiritual thoughts and meditations by the bestselling author of the Anna Pigeon mystery series. Barr's essays on a variety of topics from forgiveness and humility to "getting into heaven" reflect her personal search for meaning after the devastating failure of her marriage--a journey from atheism to faith.
New Descriptive Videos
DV011777
The Inside Man
Based on a real-life incident during the Cold War. A soviet submarine is spotted in Swedish waters, so a Swedish scientist invents a laser rod capable of detecting the presence of enemy submarines. The laser rod is stolen and a Swedish Military Intelligence officer plants a spy in the scientist's organization in an attempt to find the thief and stabilize the growing military tension.
DV011733
Out of Sync
A record producer is assigned a beautiful, sexy woman to record, only to discover that she can't sing. Then he meets a housewife with a great voice. Substituting her voice for the star's starts out as a great idea.
DV011737
Two of Hearts
Veterinarian Molly Saunders meets sentimental sportscaster Jake Michaelson at the wedding of their former spouses. When the two fall in love, their families meet and mix like oil and water, making it harder and harder for the two to stay together, in spite of their strong mutual attraction.
If you like...William Johnstone
You’ll like...
Richard Wheeler
Winfred Blevins
Terry Johnston
Ray Hogan
Dan Cushman
Stephen Overholser
New Descriptive Video Mailing Cases
Those of you who are regular viewers of our descriptive videos might have noticed that you are now receiving your videos in a much different mailing case. The Talking Books / Special Needs library made this change because of the lack of our old oblong, brown cases which are no longer being manufactured. The new cases are quite a bit different than their predecessors, specifically in how they open and close. They can be a bit tricky at first but with some practice you will find that they are an improvement over the former mailing cases.
The new cases are a solid one piece design, black in color, with two spring enforced tabs that when pressed open the case.
Here are some easy instructions for opening the new mailing cases.
First, lay the case with the clear plastic mailing label facing down on a flat surface such as a table or even your lap. I find it easiest if the two beveled ends of the case are facing away from me.
Next, press the two tabs labeled “Press” inward simultaneously. This dislodges the spring loaded locking mechanism. If the case doesn’t fall open you might need to lift it up a few inches and shake it.
Closing the case is much easier. You just need to reinsert the video and fold the case over until it clicks.
Guide Dogs for the Visually and Physically Disabled
The use of dogs to assist the blind and visually impaired began with blind German veterans of World War I. The training of dogs for this type of service has its origins in a school in Potsdam, Germany. Dorothy Harrison Eustus, and American living in Switzerland, first observed the training of guide dogs for the blind in Germany. It wasn’t until Ms. Eustus wrote and article about the Potsdam school that appeared in The Saturday Evening Post on November 5, 1927 that the American guide dog movement began. Her first student was a blind young man from Tennessee named Morris Frank. Mr. Frank asked Ms. Eustus to train a dog for him so that he might be more independent and in exchange he would help other blind Americans in achieving independence through the assistance of guide dogs. Ms. Eustus agreed and after the training Mr. Frank kept his word by establishing the first guide dog school in America called the “Seeing Eye”. If you would like more information on guide dogs for the blind please contact the Duval county office of the Florida Blind Services department at 1-800-226-6356.
The American Foundation for the Blind estimates that just over 7,000 Americans use guide dogs.
Insight Online
The Jacksonville Talking Books Library’s Newsletter The Insight can now be viewed online at our homepage: http://jpl.coj.net/lib/tbl.html
It can be viewed in the same format as the printed version of the newsletter as well as a text-only version intended to be read by adaptive technology screen reading software such as ZoomText, OpenBook, JAWS, Kurzweil, etc.
Staff Recommendations
FICTION
Looking for something good to read? Not sure what’s available in Talking Books format? Here are some recommendations from the staff of the Talking Books Library.
RC023940
Perfume: the story of a murderer by Patrick Susskind
The story of a man born with a extraordinary sense of smell but no scent of his own and his desire to create the world’s most intoxicating perfume.
RC052781
Choke by Chuck Palahniuk
In order to finance his lifestyle and pay for his mother’s nursing home care Victor Mancini has developed a wealth through sympathy scheme by pretending to choke while dining in restaurants.
“Reading gives us someplace to go when we have to stay where we are.” - quote by Mason Cooley.
RC058258
Pandora’s star by Peter Hamilton
A retired NASA pilot leads a space fairing expedition to discover why a far –off star has suddenly disappeared.
RC054157
Mortal allies by Brian Haig
Set against an American military background in peacetime Korea this novel is filled with suspense, intrigue and action from beginning to end.
RC045742
Game of thrones by George Martin
The first book in a Locus award winning series that follows the fortunes of two aristocratic families struggling for a throne in a Machiavellian world steeped in intrigue.
RC052108
The Flaneur: a stroll through the paradoxes of Paris by Edmund White
One of America’s most skillful authors has woven a beautiful, but very poignant, novel out of strands of life stretching from travel through relationships to life’s most significant values.
Staff Recommendations
NONFICTION
RC058938
The Family: the real story of the Bush dynasty by Kitty Kelly
Kelley’s book about the family that has given us two presidents in the current generation is a very well researched and eminently enjoyable read.
RC059728
Bloody Sundays by Mike Freeman
A behind the scenes look at life in the National Football League for it’s players and coaches.
RC058465
The Iraq war by John Keegan
The great British historian describes the evolution of the Iraqi state from the 8th through the 21st century including Saddam Hussein’s rise to power and current American and British actions.
RC055749
Kingdom of fear by Hunter S. Thompson
Memoirs of the controversial journalist that chronicle his personal extravagance and opinions on society.
“Books are like imprisoned souls till someone takes them down from the shelf and frees them.” - quote by Samuel Butler.
Spring Schedule 2006
Holidays & Closings
April 26 · Staff Development Day
May 29 · Memorial Day
Talking Books Library Staff
Jerry Reynolds, Manager
Chris Eaton, Librarian
Jeremy Hall, Library Assistant
We’re on the Web! http://www.klas.com/flbtbl
Macular Degeneration Booklist
RC055997
Mayo Clinic on Vision and Eye Health. 2002 Edited by Helmut Buettner.
RC048616
The Macular Degeneration Handbook: Natural Ways to Prevent and Reverse It. 1999 By Chet Cunningham.
RC053425
Macular Degeneration: The Latest Scientific Discoveries and Treatments for Preserving Your Sight. 2000 By Robert D’Amato and Joan Snyder.
RC054126
The Aging Eye. 2001 By Sandra Gordon.
RC056630
Coping with Macular Degeneration: A Guide for Patients Living with Degnerative Vision Disorder. 2000 By Marc Price and Linda Comac.
THE INSIGHT
Main Library
303 N. Laura St.
Jacksonville, Florida 32202
Phone: 904-630-1999
Fax: 904-630-0604
TDD: 904-630-2740
Hours:
Monday through Friday
9am to 5pm